This week on Net Society, we’re joined by special guest Brady Dale to talk through a moment that feels like a real inflection point for crypto, AI, and media. The conversation opens with why this cycle feels different, touching on deleveraging, fading speculation, and how AI has absorbed both capital and cultural attention. From there, the group explores what a post casino crypto world looks like, including utility, payments, stablecoins, Ethereum’s internal dynamics, and whether builders are quietly shifting priorities. The episode then moves into regulation, breaking down why legislative clarity may not arrive, why it might not matter, and how rulemaking is likely to shape the industry regardless. In the second half, the discussion widens to AI agents, automation, labor, and whether crypto is foundational infrastructure or simply attaching itself to a larger narrative. The episode closes with a reflection on the collapse of traditional media, the limits of Substack and subscriptions, AI’s impact on writing and news, and how crypto’s evolving aesthetics quietly signal where the industry may be headed next.

Mentioned in the episode

Guest Brady https://x.com/BradyDale

Brady’s Substack https://www.frontstageexit.com/

Multicoin co-founder steps down https://www.coindesk.com/business/2026/02/04/multicoin-co-founder-kyle-samani-steps-down-after-nearly-a-decade-to-pursue-other-areas-of-tech

Deleted tweet https://x.com/MiyaHedge/status/2019317927141679190?s=20

Clarity Act https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/3633/text

Show & Hosts

Net Society: https://x.com/net__society

Aaron Wright: https://x.com/awrigh01

Chris F: https://x.com/ChrisF_0x

Derek Edwards: https://x.com/derekedws

Priyanka Desai: https://x.com/pridesai

Production & Marketing

Editor: https://x.com/0xFnkl

Social: https://x.com/v_kirra

• (00:00) - Crypto Winter, AI Dominance, and the End of Speculation
• (08:24) - Utility, Builders, and the Post-Casino Crypto Era
• (17:16) - Ethereum Power, L1 vs L2, and the Commons Problem
• (24:26) - Regulation, Clarity, and the Real Shape of Crypto Policy
• (36:10) - AI, Agents, and Whether Crypto Really Matters
• (47:12) - Media Collapse, Substack, and the Future of News
• (01:15:45) - Aesthetics, Culture, and What Crypto Communicates Now
• (01:19:28) - Welcome & Disclaimer

This week on Net Society, the conversation starts with self hosting clawdbot and the sudden rise of agent driven workflows before widening into a deeper look at how AI narratives form, burn hot, and disappear just as fast. From agent social networks like Moltbook and media fragmentation to pop culture blind spots and what it means to be “too online,” the group explores how attention, taste, and relevance are shifting. The episode then moves into the emerging agent economy, touching on automation, crypto rails, payments, and whether AI actually needs crypto at all. From there, the discussion zooms out into history, acceleration, and past technological inflection points, drawing parallels between electricity, industrialization, and today’s AI moment. The episode closes with a wide ranging reflection on population decline, power, money, and whether we are approaching a fundamentally different social and economic order.

Mentioned in the episode

Moltbook the AI agent social network https://www.moltbook.com/

WWI was the end of the world https://x.com/male_leo_xxvi/status/2017051227432112623?s=20

Instagram and Substack launch TV https://open.substack.com/pub/embedded/p/even-instagram-and-substack-are-tv?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web

Show & Hosts

Net Society: https://x.com/net__society

Aaron Wright: https://x.com/awrigh01

Chris F: https://x.com/ChrisF_0x

Derek Edwards: https://x.com/derekedws

Priyanka Desai: https://x.com/pridesai

Production & Marketing

Editor: https://x.com/0xFnkl

Social: https://x.com/v_kirra

• (00:00) - Self-Hosting, Mac Minis, and Agent Social Networks
• (04:40) - AI Narratives, Attention Cycles, and Being Too Online
• (11:19) - Media Fragmentation, Pop Culture, and Agent Consumption
• (19:04) - Agents, Automation, and the Shape of Work
• (27:04) - Crypto, AI Rails, and the Agent Economy
• (40:38) - Acceleration, History, and Technological Epochs
• (58:05) - Population, Power, and What Comes After Money
• (01:19:42) - Welcome & Disclaimer

This week on Net Society, the crew record from the West Coast and reflect on how San Francisco feels like an early AI boomtown, from Waymo becoming mundane to builders everywhere working on something new. The conversation moves through prediction markets, regulation, and why AI adoption is still largely top-down, before widening into self-hosting, homegrown software, and what automation could look like inside the home. From Apple’s strategic positioning and embodied AI to Davos signaling a global shift around AI, crypto, and labor, the episode closes with a candid discussion on the shutdown of Farcaster, the limits of Web3 social v1, and what a more mature version of decentralized social might become next.

Mentioned in the episode

FSD Insurance Discounts https://x.com/SawyerMerritt/status/2013998338790535320?s=20

Ralph Wiggum Claude Code https://x.com/hackerrank/status/2013936125107450280?s=20

Farcaster sells to Neynar https://x.com/dwr/status/2014045233189888483?s=20

Show & Hosts

Net Society: https://x.com/net__society

Aaron Wright: https://x.com/awrigh01

Chris F: https://x.com/ChrisF_0x

Derek Edwards: https://x.com/derekedws

Priyanka Desai: https://x.com/pridesai

Production & Marketing

Editor: https://x.com/0xFnkl

Social: https://x.com/v_kirra

• (00:00) - Prediction Markets and Regulation
• (03:23) - Waymo, Self-Driving, and the West Coast Gap
• (07:54) - San Francisco as an AI Boomtown
• (14:20) - Self-Hosting, Homegrown Software, and Automation
• (24:27) - Apple, AI, and the Future of Devices
• (33:08) - Davos, AI Adoption, and Global Power Shifts
• (41:20) - Web3 Social, Farcaster, and the End of V1
• (01:00:22) - Welcome & Disclaimer